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Emily Alston
=The Alston Family= The Beginnings When the Alston family name comes to mind one repeatedly thinks of Texas. This is, for the most part, due to the fact that the Alston’s have been located in Texas since 1841. So one could infer that the Alston’s are certainly a family that belongs to the lone star state. But even so, Texas is not where it all began for our family. It is not the beginning of our story or our legacy. John Alston is known as the founder of our family according to my relatives and he originated in Bedfordshire, England. In 1700 John came across the sea to North Carolina from England and settled around present day Edenton. John was a hard working man like most of the Alston’s. He owned Plantations and several pieces of land to make his living and to support his family. Eventually, even though it was contradictory to his original occupation, John decided to become a constable of the county. John had several children and grandchildren. James Alston was one of John’s grandchildren and the grandchild that is directly related to my bloodline. James is known in our family as a man of courage and strength, and has an incredible story. James Alston fought as a patriot soldier in the American Revolution. While in the war he was rumored to have been captured by the British. It was told that James bravely escaped on horseback as he was being taken to prison. Stories of courage in the Alston family are not few. Many Alston’s have courageous stories such as James, but his story undoubtedly goes down in the books for many more generations to hear. The Lone Star Family A man of importance that justly started our legacy of being true Texans is Nathaniel Alston. Nathaniel, like James, was a brave man. He partook in some fighting in the Mexico War that gained Texas its independence. After the war in 1841 Nathaniel moved our family into the lone star state and that is when our new and permanent home became Texas. Nathaniel settled the family just north of Houston in a town called Navasota. He was an agriculture man and worked hard to make his living like the Alston men before him. Yet, hard-work was not the only thing the Texan Alston men had in common, it is known that for the next two generations the Alston men worked in Agriculture in Texas. Alston’s are known to be strong believers that you get what you work for, and each of them certainly worked hard day and night. However, in 1950, Astor Alston ended up selling his portions and that is when the Alston line in agriculture came to an end. Astor is my grandfather’s dad and many stories have been shared about this dire man. He worked hard like the rest but was not too keen to be friendly to everyone he met. He was all about family though and most of his close friends were relatives. My grandfather carried this tradition of family loyalty from his father over to us. The importance of family has been something I have known since I was a child. The whole Alston family is inseparable. Each member is so close that all are practically best friends and tied at the hip. It is a wonderful and beautiful thing that was carried over and will continue for the next generation of Alston’s. I am the 7th generation from Texas and the 11th generation from John Alston. I am very proud to be a Texan, a true daughter of the Alamo and am proud to share this with anyone who asks. =The Lewis Family= The Beginnings On my mother’s side there are just as many interesting stories. It all began in France where my Grandpa’s Great-great grandfather resided and ended up migrating to Minnesota where they gave birth to a son named David E. Pepin in 1863. David married Mary Proqure and had ten children with his lovely wife, one of which was David Alvin Pepin. He worked as a train engineer and an inventor. At some point he moved to Seattle, Washington where he died. David E. Pepin’s son David Alan was my Grandpa’s grandfather. David married a woman named Rose Ellen La Morureaux. The couple moved to Seattle, Washington, possibly the same time as his father did, and there they had eight children. One of the eight was Eunice Pepin and she would be my grandpa’s mother. David was a postmaster in Seattle and at the age of 61 passed away. Eunice Pepin (my grandpa’s mother) was born in Seattle on April 1st, 1911. She married a young man named Amos B. Tucker and had one son, my grandpa, Jack E. Lewis. Eunice divorced Amos in 1934 and ended up marrying Troy Broox Lewis. My grandpa did not become aware that Amos was his father until he was in his 30s and when he found out he did not attempt to contact him, however he does know Amos had served in the US Navy. But, my grandpa did regard Troy as his father. Troy adopted my grandpa and became his stepfather. Troy also served in the US Navy and served in WWII as well as the Korean war. In 1971 Eunice passed away, Troy returned to his previous home in Oklahoma and passed away in 1976. An interesting thing about this side of my family is that my grandparents happen to be connected through their families. My grandmother, Betty Lewis, parents are Dorothy Irene Woodey and Harold Cloise Sanders. Harold and Dorothy had two children but on February 17th, 1942 Harold died due to being sadly run over by an automobile. In 1943, Dorothy remarried and her husbands name was Fredrick Bernard Pepin, who is related to my grandpa. Fred was the owner of Rainer Floor Covering in Seattle, Washington and he adopted my grandma and her brother after marrying Dorothy. My grandma and grandpa fell fast for each other after meeting and were married on August 29th, 1958. They had two children, my uncle Larry and my mom, Lynda. =My Generation= Parents My parents Tim and Lynda Alston are definitely my heroes. They raised me in a wonderful neighborhood and gave me a blessed childhood. My dad grew up in Texas like most of the Alston family and went to school at Southwest Texas where he would meet me mom. My mom was born in Tacoma, Washington and moved around a lot during her childhood but eventually ended up in Texas where she then decided to go to Southwest. They met each other in San Marcos and after falling in love they were married. They had three children, my twin brothers, Van and Alex, and then they had me on June 4 th, 1992. Daughter of the Alamo I was born in Houston, Texas and lived there for three years until my family moved to San Antonio. San Antonio is where I call home and I love it more and more as my hometown each time I visit. I was very fortunate and grew up within a great community called [http://www.ahisd.net/campuses/ahhs/index.html%7CAlamo Heights] . I was a gymnast until high school when I became a cheerleader for our school. I think those four years in school my identity was in my sport. It is what my days and even nights consisted of and I loved it. Then in my senior year after deciding to compete in a regional journalism competition and winning 1st place I decided my future would be Journalism and this decision brought me to the [http://www.ou.edu/web.html%7CUniversity of Oklahoma]. I am now a student here and in the http://www.ou.edu/gaylord%7C [Gaylord] college. I plan on graduating May 2014 and cannot wait to see where I go from there. With the amazing qualities I have obtained from my family I am not scared of the future but hopeful and full of faith because if I have learned anything from my family it is to always have faith in what is to come and trust in the plans ahead. My family name, both Lewis and Alston, has an admirable history. The Alston’s and Lewis’ are hard-workers; they are courageous and loyal to their families. In the end I would like to be remembered for all of those commendable characteristics. I hope to be remembered as someone who was successful and as someone who was a good wife and mother. I strive to live up to my family’s name and can only hope that when I go I will be remembered as an Alston/Lewis, not just because of my blood but also my families many features. 100_4005.JPG|My high school graduation lunch with the whole Lewis and Alston Family. From Left to Right: Van Alston (Brother), Sandra Alston (Grandma), Marlin Alston (Grandpa), Lynda Alston (Mom), Tim Alston (Dad), Me, Larry Lewis (Uncle), Alyssa Lewis (Cousin), Alex Alston (Brother), Jack Lewis (Grandpa), Betty Lewis (Grandma) 2156_1057604610609_863_n.jpg|Left to Right: Marlin Alston, Sandra Alston, Betty Lewis, Jack Lewis IMG_0175.JPG|At my brother's college graduation. Left to Right: Van Alston, Me, Jack Lewis, Tim Alston, Betty Lewis, Mariln Alston, Alex Alston IMG_1613.JPG|The wonderful women in my family. Left to Right: Lynda Alston, Me, Sandra Alston, Betty Lewis IMG_0481.jpg|My dad (Tim Alston) and I in front of the Alamo. Category:Students